British politician calls on schools to reduce iPad usage in the classroom, claims it contributes to bullying

There’s always been somewhat of a debate regarding the effectiveness of technology in the classroom, but a politician from the British Conservative Party is speaking out against the practice. Edward Timpson, the Minister for Children and Families, says that schools are allowing children to spend “too much” of their day on iPads, while also noting that excessive use of the devices can contribute to bullying…

According to the Telegraph, while speaking to peers on the House of Lords Communications Committee, Timpson claimed that a number of schools are becoming too reliant on iPads. Timpson went on to call on educators to confiscate the iPads of those kids who are using it for inappropriate activities. Specifically, he points to bullying as something that the iPad contributes to.

Though, Timpson believes that confiscation should be a last resort and that the solution to the problem as a whole is for schools and educators to find a “technology balance” in the classroom, ensuring that the fight for attention between iPads and instructors doesn’t become a “battleground.”

Furthermore, Timpson notes that children are spending an increasing amount of their life looking at a table and that educators have to respond to that trend and ensure that human interaction skills are still adequate.

Timpson’s full statement:

“A problem in a number of schools which we’ve sought to address is the iPad or the tablet coming into schools and it forming far too much of the school day’s activities of children and it being used inappropriately for some of the bullying and harassment that we know sadly goes on the back of it.

That’s why we’ve strengthen the powers of headteachers to confiscate and remove material and so on.

Children will be spending more of their life living through a tablet. It is the direction we now know is going to be taking hold for the foreseeable future and we have to respond to that.”

It’s certainly an interesting argument on Timpson’s part. The use of iPads in education has a handful of benefits and opens children up to a vast amount of information. Though, some have argued that the devices are making children less social, are less effective than traditional classroom materials, and put children at risk for bullying and other forms of harassment.

What do you think about Timpson’s comments? Are they valid or coming from someone who is stuck in the past? Let us know below…